Suspected suicide bomber shot at Stockwell station.

[cori]

Have just heard an unconfirmed report on the radio. Anyone else?

How on earth can you avoid Asian people in London? Even if you wanted to? (Which I don't btw) I've carried on using the tube and frankly if I was going to panic every time I saw a young Asian man with a rucksack I'd be in a permanent state of panic - even if it was acceptable, it's simply not feasible!

I honestly cant see how you could avoid young asian males on public transport in any part of the country. Fgs, its a silly idea unless you don't or haven't used public transport for ages. As i do, i know how ridiculous the concept is (whether it be racist or not)

there are lots of dodgy looking people on buses as i said before, I included most probably!

I did not say you would avoid them

I said you would be wary of them per say

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/4708615.stm

Latest on BBC news

India jails 'plane crash plotter'

Afroz (right) was cleared of waging war on India
An Indian court has found an al-Qaeda suspect guilty of planning to crash aircraft into landmarks in London.
Mohammed Afroz Abdul Razzak was sentenced to seven years in jail for plotting attacks against a friendly nation and forging documents.

Prosecutors said he planned to hijack planes and crash them into the House of Commons and Tower Bridge.

Afroz was arrested in Mumbai (Bombay) in 2001. His lawyers say he confessed under duress and will appeal.

The judge in the anti-terrorism court in Mumbai found Afroz guilty of criminal conspiracy, forgery and "committing depredation on territories at peace with India", court officials said.

'Global conspiracy'

The court heard that Afroz checked into a hotel near London's Heathrow airport just before the 11 September attacks in the US.

We have no doubt in our minds that this conviction is wholly illegal and it will be definitely set aside by the honourable court

Defence lawyer Momin Solkar

Prosecutors said the 30-year-old, an educated Muslim from Mumbai, had spent considerable sums of money training as a pilot, both in the United Kingdom and Australia.

Prosecutors say his confessions revealed a global conspiracy by al-Qaeda to carry out suicide attacks in several countries.

Afroz also planned to attack Melbourne's Rialto Towers and parliament in Delhi, prosecutors say.

The court was told that Afroz and seven accomplices booked themselves onto Manchester-bound flights - but for some reason panicked and fled just as they were due to board.

Afroz was arrested in Mumbai in October 2001.

sorry www, but are you saying that people are posting on here that they treat Asians differently all the time? I hadn't read that into it.

Fio2, I agree that we can't tell exactly who is and who isn't a terrorist. Looking at the photos today I certainly wouldn't have thought twice about any of them 3 weeks ago. But I'm afraid that Dh and I are both avoiding non-essential trips by underground right now - thankfully we have that option as we only used it out of laziness.

You can't avoid people from Asain decent on the tube, especially on the district line in East London which is where I am . I can either try and make eye contact with people to reassure myself they are safe (as earlier suggested), identify people who make me uncomfortable in the intance that there was any and either change carriages, or in the case of a bus or a tube, get off and wait for another. I think that is the general gist of what people on here mean. After all it does seem that some of those yesterday were also black and there may well be white suicide bombers. I still don't feel people can be blamed for wanting to avoid anyone who makes them feel worried atm whatever they look like really.

oir wary

not religious but i think judge and you shall not be judged is a good saying. i am not going to change my way of thinking just because some sick bastard who happened to be asian young and carrying a backpack on the tube did something dispicable. Young women my age do disgusting things, they mureder and abuse kids etc, doesnt mean i do.

I did not say that its right, I said that you would do it as part of human nature

• as in the height of the bombings by the IRA in the 70's when you heard an Irish accent, the same pattern of thought will go through you head, illogically, but it the thought would be there

Fi02, so why have you cancelled your trip to London? Sorry are you being contradictory or am I being silly?

i agree you can't blame people for feeling afraid and wanting to do what little they can to protect themselves and their loved ones and i guess if leaving a bus etc if they feel uncomfortable although rather impractical (especially if thats your method of getting to work every day) is doing precisely that. i think one of the things that has become aparrent in this thread is that people have different ideas of what racist is

half of my family is Irish. i know nothing of where they came from or when they came over because , it wasnt talked about then. infact it ewas almost denyed. My Grandad on his death bed told me about how he used to go on orange marches. i think it is sad a whole generation (or maybe 2 or 3) denyed their pasts and tried to be something else just because of that terrorist minority

It is all saddening and I think it is a disgrace you let the 'minority' of mindless sick idiots dictate your life and make you feel uneasy.

If I didn't live here I wouldn't be making any plans to come into London. And if I could afford to go everywhere by cab, I would do.

the reason i have cancelled my trip to guys hospital is because I have to come alone with two children, one who as you may or may not know is severely disabled. if something happens, like it did today that panics people on the tube and I get seperated from my daughter, heaven knows what would happen to her. I have to change tube stations twice. i just cannot take that risk tbh. I am a hypocrite I know

But WHY is it racist to say that you would be nervous if a young bloke who looked exactly like one of the bombers sat next to you on a bus clutching a giant rucksack?? I have said over and over and over again that if I was in Surrey and saw a bloke who looked just like Abigail Witchall's attacker (who was white) when I was walking down a country lane, I would turn back. If I was in Yorkshire when the Ripper was at large and saw, at night, a man who matched his description I would be scared to be alone with him. If the bombers were white young men wearing hoodies/caps and carrying giant bloody rucksacks I would be apprehensive about them. If they dressed as frogs I would watch out for people dressed as frogs. Jesus, how much plainer can I make it. I find it absolutely offensive to be called racist about this. It is NOT racist.
As for not seeing the comparison between avoiding sitting next a youth who looks like the bombers and avoiding being alone in a tube carriage with a male or group of males that I feel uncomfortable with, well, what's not to see?

Nobody is dictating my life! I choose not to use the underground or buses atm. I don't use them much anyway with two kids. Prams and buses and trains don't seem that compatible to be honest. I have a perfect right to think something is too dangerous for me and to avoid it. I don't walk down dark alleys at night either. Is that letting criminals win??

Aloha, it isn't!

Aloha, it isn't!

No, Fio, that's the whole point. You're not a hypocrite. You're making a decision that you think will be best for your family in the circumstances. I will get on a tube or a bus or whatever and I won't get off no matter who else gets on, but I shan't be taking ds up to London.

'fraid I'm with Aloha on this one (and the only other topic we've ever agreed on is whether women should be able to elect for c/sections!).

aloha if your last post was aimed at me i would like to point out that actually i don't think its racist (i believe racism is more when someone groups (for instance) all asians into a group and makes derogatory and offensive remarks about them etc ) i feel that your view is understandable in the light of what has been going on (although i myself don't feel the same)

dictate your beliefs then. A;loha you may not be racist but if you see a young asian man on a bus who might be bloody atheist for all you know and you feel uneasy about him being there, that is prejudiced and you are whether you like it or not discriminating against him just because of his colour. sad but true. i can understand the knee jerk reaction though and it must feel different if you live there, but maybe in a week or two you will start feeling more rational, everyone will

Is anyone else terrified by the police response to this? That police officers are operating a shoot to kill policy on our streets? At least we are told they are police officers - BIL who is ex-army says more likely SAS. It makes me MORE afraid.

There are violent criminals about everywhere. Some of the bombers have been black. people of all ages and descriptions commit henious crimes. Following your reasoning aloha, you would never step foot out of your front door if you wanted to avoid anybody who could pose a risk. Instead you are choosing to avoid one particular group of people based on the colour of their skin. That is racism.

I totally and utterly refute that fio. did you read my post? What about the bit re Abigail Witchall's attacker? IS that racist too.
I am not racist. This is not racist.

edam they will be SAS

it qwont be your normal fat copper will it